This fall I bought an '86 944na that has about 109,000 miles on it, but has been very well maintained. It's been in storage for the winter, but I'm anxiously awaiting the spring so I can get it out and try it out.

I have a question about the timing and balance belts. They were changed about 7,000 miles ago, but that was in 1997. My inclination is with that age, it's probably cheap insurance to change the belts right away. And the pulleys too since I'm not sure when they were last changed. What does everyone think of that?

With such limited miles in the last five years, are there any other preventative maintenance items you'd do right away beyond the basic oil change and such?

I will work on this car myself, but I plan to start with smaller stuff (not the timing belt!)because I don't have a ton of automotive experience (yet ).

 

Yep, IMHO you should change the belts every 5 years. Make sure you get them re-tensioned after 1,500 miles! Then again after another 15,000.

Edit- You probably want to change the water pump while you are in there. Rollers, maybe. Some people would say YES!, I say inspect them and make a decision.

Also, brake fluid needs to be flushed every 2 years. This is very important but a lot of people don't do it. Without this important maintainace your brakes rust to death from the inside.

 

I'll second Tabor's items, and add power steering fluid to the change list. Also transaxle lube, if you don't know when it was done, with a vote for Redline MTL. And new coolant & thermostat along with the water pump, obviously. You're also getting along toward the age / miles where I'd consider doing all the coolant hoses. Inspect the CV boots on the rear axle; if greasy or cracked, time to do that, too.

Jim, we can spend more of your money... but that's a pretty good start...

 

Elf,
I bought my '87 NA last year in April after it sat unused for 6 years. Only 59,000 miles but I replaced the timing & balance shaft belts, waterpump, thermostat, all hoses, all drive belts, all fluids - brake, trans, power steering fluid etc. All filters too and I had a little leak in the fuel rail so I think there was a hose changed there too. All this cost $1850 done by others. Would have been more done piece meal but I saved on having the waterpump done. I would have saved a LOT more if I'd done it myself.

Tabor's right, have your timing belt re-tensioned. No one told me this and I didn't. I've been lucky. Consider common failure points also. Leaking power steering reservoir. It has an internal filter that can't be changed without changing the whole reservoir. $40 for parts...saves early failure of the rack
- hopefully. Have them look at your clutch and your front-of-the-engine seals. Jim is right about the CV boots. Mine were good, yours are older and may not be. All I can think of now. By the way, I've put another 11,000 miles on her and she just gets smoother quicker and more enjoyable. Not a hiccup, ot once. Oh, forgot. The engine mounts. They are only good for 30K miles I hear. Mine are getting done this week. I'm told it is absolutely amazing what this change will do...we'll see. Good luck and enjoy!!

 

This sounds really familar as my car had 9,000 miles on the belts but were also five years old. I took the board's advice and replaced them along with the rollers. I did not change the waterpump as it too had 9,000 miles on it. Guess what I'm in the middle of doing right now....the waterpump. If you go ahead and change the belts, change the waterpump...don't even think about it, just do it. On the other hand the belts I removed from the car look as good as the new ones. Overall it is your call and the "safe" way to go is to replace the belts. This will not be a cheap job at a shop but since you just bought the car you could attribute the cost to "peace of mind" which is worth quite a bit with these cars.

 

Thanks for all the responses...I'll be sure NOT to show this punch list to my wife

I'm definitely going to do the belts and rollers right away. I know the waterpump was done only 7,000 miles ago, albeit in '97. Still do it again?

Thanks,

 

Couldnt agree more. Lose the belts or the waterpump - lose the engine...Losing the car ain't far behind.

They may not be the fastest car out there but these a genuinely nice sports cars.

 

[quote]Originally posted by jim968:
<strong>Also transaxle lube, if you don't know when it was done, with a vote for Redline MTL.</strong><hr></blockquote>
MTL is too light IMO. It's only a 70W80 GL-4 grade manual transmission lubricant. You would be much better off with 75W90 or 75W90NS gear lubricant since it's rated GL-5. I know the owner's manual only calls for GL-4 but the workshop manual says GL-5 or GL-4 if it's a single 80 weight "hypoid oil."

 

There is also "MTL 90" which is a heavier version of MTL. I have MTL is my transaxle.

 

another thing you might want to change while in there is the all of the front seals. you'll have a fresh front end and wont have to worry about the leaks that tend to appear right after the the water pump change.